Atlanta USCIS Info

November 8, 2006

If you have read this message carefully and you cannot find the answer to your question so you want to email us, please be sure to include the date your home study was mailed to us or we cannot respond.

AGENCIES - THE PROCESSING TIME IS SLOW. PLEASE TELL THE PROSPECTIVE ADOPTIVE PARENTS THAT THERE IS NOTHING WE CAN DO ABOUT THEIR APPLICATION UNTIL WE RECEIVE THE HOME STUDY. THE HOME STUDY IS WHAT MARKS THEIR "PLACE IN LINE" IN TERMS OF PROCESSING TIME.

ALSO, PLEASE DO NOT LET YOUR FAMILIES 171/NOTICE OF APPROVAL EXPIRE, ESPECIALLY IF THEY ARE ABOUT TO BE ASSIGNED A CHILD!!! WE DO NOT WANT TO TELL A FAMILY THAT THEY WILL LOSE A CHILD BECAUSE SOMEONE FORGOT TO FILE A NEW APPLICATION. SEE NUMBER 10 BELOW.

PROCESSING TIME

We receive such a high volume of individual inquiries that to respond to each one would take significant time away from adjudicating orphan applications and petitions, so we reply to email inquiries within three business days only if both the I600A and the home study have been in our office since before August 1, 2006, and your question is not answered below.

Until we receive both the home study and the I600A Application we can take no action and the clock has not started tickingӔ. The average processing time after we receive both the application and the home study is now 90 days due to a huge number of applications filed recently (and the correspondingly high number of inquiries).

We cannot acknowledge that we have received the home study, but we do acknowledge receipt of the application by sending you a receipt for the fee, so if you send your home study with the application you will know we have received it when you receive the receipt.

If the home study is being sent separately from the I600A and you think you will want assurances we have received it, please send it via the US Postal Service, registered mail, no signature required, but with a receipt so you can track it on line, to our PO Box address, This is the fastest way for us to receive mail.

As soon as we receive both the home study and the application "the clock (measuring the waiting period) will start ticking". We will quickly send you an appointment for each person who is required to be fingerprinted, that is everybody 18 or older living in your home. By doing this, the 15-month validity period of the fingerprints more closely matches the 18-month validity period of the I600A.

If we must request more information or documents from you, of course it will take additional time. We might need to get in touch with you, so it will be helpful if you include your email address.

THE MOST COMMON QUESTIONS FROM PARENTS AND HOME STUDY PREPARERS:

1. DOCUMENTS - You must submit proof of US citizenship or legal immigration status and if you are married, proof that you are legally married. Birth Certificates, Marriage Certificates, and legal proof of termination of each prior marriage are documents that must be issued by the appropriate state authority. Your documents support your application so they will be sent with the application to the American Consul where you will apply for a visa for your child. We will not be able to return them to you. Please be sure the copies are legible. You will need your original documents later in the process.

2. ARREST RECORDS - If you were ever arrested we need:

a) A statement from you, with original signature in blue ink, describing the circumstances of

the arrest and mentioning any mitigating circumstances.

b) An original certified copy of the final disposition of the sentence imposed and it should

include all charges against you from the court with jurisdiction over the place where the arrest took place. A final disposition is the official document issued by the court which informs us that you completed the requirements of the sentence or that charges were dismissed. If your fingerprints expire and you need to be fingerprinted again for another background check, you will again need an original certified copy of the disposition.

3. HOME STUDY - Must be an original document, (faxed copies are not acceptable), less than six months old. If you live in Georgia, the home study must have an original signature of both the home study preparer, and of an official of the Adoption Agency. If you live in Alabama, the home study must have an original signature of the preparer and of the "Responsible State Agency". We have no requirements that the home study be notarized.

4. UPDATED HOME STUDY - We require an amended or updated home study only under the following circumstances:

a) Before approval of the I600/I600A, only if there is a change in circumstances of the prospective parents. Some typical events that would require an amended home study are a move, another adult in the home, or a job change. Usually, a change in an element of the home study will trigger the need for an amended home study. These are examples only and there are many other changes in circumstances that would require an amended home study be submitted to us before approval.

b) After approval of the I600/I600A, an amended home study is required only if you are making a new request such as a new background check (because your fingerprints have expired) and there has been a change in your circumstances, for example, if you have moved, changed jobs or there is another adult living in your home. These are examples only. There are other reasons that would require that you submit an amended home study. If you are uncertain, please seek professional advice or read the regulations to determine if an amended home study is required when you are applying to be fingerprinted again.

c) Expiration of the I600A, and the adoption is not complete so you must file a new I600A Application, an update of the original home study (less than 6 months old), is fine.

5. THE NOTICE OF APPROVAL- The notice of approval is the form we issue when your I600A Application for Advanced Processing is approved. It is sometimes referred to as a form 171 or 797. The expiration date of the I600A Application is 18 months from the approval date on the notice, but the expiration date is not shown on the notice. You have to calculate it. Be sure the name you use on the I600A Application is the same as the name on your passport.

6. THE BACKGROUND CHECK (AND NEW FINGERPRINTS) -The background check is valid for 15 months, and is shown on the notice of approval by the fingerprint expiration date. It is not uncommon to need to be fingerprinted again. To request new fingerprints, mail us a written request to be fingerprinted again, a copy of the approval notice, and the fee for each person to be fingerprinted. We will immediately send you an appointment. When we get the results from the FBI, we will issue a new notice of approval with the new validity date of your background check/fingerprints.

Remember, you are requesting a new background check and if you have ever been arrested we will need certified copies of the disposition for each arrest, again. The disposition you sent us earlier has been sent to the Embassy or Consul. Also, if there has been a significant change in your circumstances, we will need an updated or amended home study. (See 4 above.)

It will take time for us to receive the results and to issue a new notice of approval, and for you to receive the notice of approval. We suggest you request to be reprinted two months before the expiration date.

Most approval notices have detailed instructions as to how to obtain an appointment for fingerprints.

7. CHANGING THE APPOINTMENT TO BE FINGERPRINTED Read the information on your appointment notice. You will find very specific instructions regarding a new appointment.

8. YOU WANT TO ADOPT MORE CHILDREN THAN YOU HAVE BEEN APPROVED TO ADOPT -To determine the number of children a prospective parent can adopt, we follow exactly the recommendation of the adoption agency as indicated in the home study. Read it carefully before you send it to us to be sure it is correct and shows the actual number of children you want to adopt. Sometimes there is a discrepancy between what is indicated on the application and what the home study recommends. After the application has been adjudicated and the notice of approval is issued, the number of children you may adopt cannot be changed unless you go through a long, expensive process. A new I 600A or a Motion to Reopen must be filed along with a new home study and accompanying documents.

9. YOU WISH TO CHANGE THE COUNTRY WHERE YOU WILL ADOPT ֖ Use Form I-824, Application for Action on an Approved Application or Petition.

10. YOUR I600A HAS EXPIRED AND THE ADOPTION IS NOT COMPLETE - An I600A Application cannot be extended beyond the 18- month validity period. The 18 months begins from the date of approval as shown on the Approval Notice. The Application is considered abandoned if you have not filed the I600 within those 18 months. If that happens, you must file a completely new I600A Application, including all the documentation and the fees, even though they were submitted with the first I600A Application. This is because we sent your original Application and all the accompanying documents to the American Consul or Embassy you designated. This is becoming a common problem for those adopting from CHINA because of Chinese government processing times. To file again, you will need:

a) An updated home study and a photocopy of the original home study;

b) If your fingerprints have been extended and are valid, you do not need new fingerprints.

c) Photocopies of all documents you originally submitted, such as marriage certificates, birth

certificates, etc.

d) If you have an arrest record, we will need original, certified copies of the dispositions, again.

e) Please include a copy of the previous approval with the application.

NOTES FOR HOME STUDY PREPARERS - MOST COMMON ERRORS IN HOME STUDIES

To protect the orphans, the preparer must make assessments, evaluations, and determinations. Please do not describe the home or the income in great detail, and then stop - before you make an assessment or evaluation. Though it may seem obvious to you, CIS cannot assume.... This is a legal process, and we cannot make assumptions based only on a description of finances or living accommodations. We need for you to make an assessment. You have seen the situation and we have not.

1) 8 CFR Part 204.3 (e) (3) Living accommodations a detailed description of the living accommodations Ņ must include an assessment of the suitability of accommodations for a child and a determination whether such space meets applicable State requirements, if any.

2) 8 CFR Part 204.3(e)(2)(ii) Finances - Assessment of the finances of the prospective adoptive parents ... The home study should make a determination that the funds available for the support of the prospective adoptive child are sufficient.

3) Do not tell the prospective parents that they should request two children, then recommend only one child. The parents get upset. Please do not use child/ren to indicate more than one child. CIS will have to see that as one child. Child/ren is too vague, and again, we do not make assumptions.

THE VERY MOST IMPORTANT THINGS FOR EVERYBODY TO REMEMBER

1) DO NOT LET YOUR APPLICATION FOR ADVANCE PROCESSING (I600A) EXPIRE

The I600A is valid for 18-months from the approval date as shown on the Notice of Approval (Form I-171 or 797).

An expiration date is not shown on the Notice of Approval. You must calculate the expiration date which is 18 months from the approval date.

It is not possible to extend the I600A Application. You must file a completely new application with complete supporting documents and an updated home study.

The Fingerprint expiration date is not the expiration date of the Notice of Approval.

2) DO NOT LET YOUR FINGERPRINTS EXPIRE

3) DO NOT LEAVE THE UNITED STATES UNTIL YOU HAVE A VALID APPROVAL

4) DO NOT SEND US FAXES. We do not receive them. We are expecting this auto reply and email communication will replace the old fax system.

5) DO NOT ATTEMPT TO USE INFO PASS OR THE CIS WEBSITE to check on your adoption application or to schedule an appointment. Your inquiry/request will not be directed to adoptions.

The best way to contact us is, after you have read this auto response, to email us.

6) DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CHECK ON THE STATUS OF YOUR I600A until we have had the

home study and the Application for the complete current processing time.

HELPFUL EMAIL ADDRESSES

Our email address is atladoption@dhs.gov

For general information concerning Inter-Country adoptions, please visit our website at [url=http://www.uscis.gov]USCIS Home Page[/url]

For country specific information, please visit the Department of States website,

[url=http://travel.state.gov/family/adoption/country/country_369.html#h]Adoption Country Specific Information[/url]

This is a great website where you can look up information about the specific requirements of the country from which you are adopting.

If you would like more information about background checks, go to [url=http://www.uscis.gov/graphics/publicaffairs/factsheets/security_checks_42506.pdf]Page Request Not Found[/url]

We cannot advise you regarding your State, Department of State, or foreign adoption requirements.

Our mailing address is:

ADOPTION UNIT

US Citizenship and Immigration Services

PO Box 50590

Atlanta, GA 30302

INTERNATIONAL ADOPTION - INFORMATION ABOUT A SPECIFIC CASE

We receive such a high volume of individual inquiries that to respond to each one would take significant time away from adjudicating orphan applications and petitions, so we reply to email inquiries within three business days only if both the I600A and the home study are in our office and your question is not answered in this email. Please read this message carefully. We are currently working on applications/home studies received between August 1st and 15th.

To receive an email response to an inquiry about a Form I-600 or I-600A, the sender must be the petitioner or his or her legal representative who has filed a notice of Appearance as Attorney (form G-28). Please provide the following when requesting information via email:

For a form I600A:

The exact name of the petitioner and date the home study was mailed to us.

For a form I600:

The exact name of the petitioner and date the home study was mailed to us.

The exact name, date of birth and country of birth of the child;

The alien registration number (A number) of the case, if you know it.

This email does not cover all situations and it is not comprehensive. If you need additional information you might find it on the websites listed at the end of this message.

Adoption Email: Atladoption@dhs.gov